(A)(1) The director of agriculture or the director’s designee may enter at all reasonable times any premises at which a dangerous wild animal or restricted snake is confined, with the consent of the owner of the premises, for the purpose of determining compliance with this chapter and rules.

Terms Used In Ohio Code 935.19

  • agriculture: includes farming; ranching; aquaculture; algaculture meaning the farming of algae; apiculture and related apicultural activities, production of honey, beeswax, honeycomb, and other related products; horticulture; viticulture, winemaking, and related activities; animal husbandry, including, but not limited to, the care and raising of livestock, equine, and fur-bearing animals; poultry husbandry and the production of poultry and poultry products; dairy production; the production of field crops, tobacco, fruits, vegetables, nursery stock, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, flowers, sod, or mushrooms; timber; pasturage; any combination of the foregoing; the processing, drying, storage, and marketing of agricultural products when those activities are conducted in conjunction with, but are secondary to, such husbandry or production; and any additions or modifications to the foregoing made by the director of agriculture by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119 of the Revised Code. See Ohio Code 1.61
  • Board of health: means the board of health of a city or general health district or the authority having the duties of a board of health in any city authorized by section 3709. See Ohio Code 935.01
  • Dangerous wild animal: means any of the following, including hybrids unless otherwise specified:

    (1) Hyenas;

    (2) Gray wolves, excluding hybrids;

    (3) Lions;

    (4) Tigers;

    (5) Jaguars;

    (6) Leopards, including clouded leopards, Sunda clouded leopards, and snow leopards;

    (7) All of the following, including hybrids with domestic cats unless otherwise specified:

    (a) Cheetahs;

    (b) Lynxes, including Canadian lynxes, Eurasian lynxes, and Iberian lynxes;

    (c) Cougars, also known as pumas or mountain lions;

    (d) Caracals;

    (e) Servals, excluding hybrids with domestic cats commonly known as savannah cats. See Ohio Code 935.01

  • Hearsay: Statements by a witness who did not see or hear the incident in question but heard about it from someone else. Hearsay is usually not admissible as evidence in court.
  • Humane society: means an organization that is organized under section 1717. See Ohio Code 935.01
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Natural resources law enforcement officers: means peace officers as specified in division (A)(6) of section 109. See Ohio Code 935.01
  • Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
  • Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
  • Restricted snake: means any of the following:

    (1) All of the following constricting snakes that are twelve feet or longer:

    (a) Green anacondas;

    (b) Yellow anacondas;

    (c) Reticulated pythons;

    (d) Indian pythons;

    (e) Burmese pythons;

    (f) North African rock pythons;

    (g) South African rock pythons;

    (h) Amethystine pythons. See Ohio Code 935.01

(2) If the director or the director’s designee is denied access to any such premises, and if the director reasonably suspects that the person who possesses the dangerous wild animal or restricted snake is not in compliance with this chapter or rules, the director may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction in the county in which the premises is located for a search warrant authorizing access to the premises for the purposes of this section.

(3) The court shall issue the search warrant for the purposes requested if there is probable cause to believe that the person is not in compliance with this chapter or rules. The finding of probable cause may be based on hearsay, provided that there is a substantial basis for believing that the source of the hearsay is credible and that there is a factual basis for the information furnished.

(B) The director may designate any of the following to conduct inspections under this section:

(1) Employees of the department of agriculture;

(2) Natural resources law enforcement officers with the consent of the director of natural resources;

(3) Employees of the department of health with the consent of the director of health;

(4) Employees of a board of health with the consent of the board;

(5) Humane society agents appointed under section 1717.06 of the Revised Code with the consent of the humane society.

(C) If a person designated under division (B) of this section determines, while conducting an inspection, that a violation of this chapter or rules has occurred, is occurring, or may occur, the person shall immediately notify the director of agriculture. The director may proceed as provided in section 935.24 of the Revised Code.

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